CLEVELAND — President of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and the Guardians’ front office brass descended upon Las Vegas this week, which played host to the annual General Managers Meetings.
Each year, the GM Meetings mark the unofficial start of the MLB offseason. Executives from all 30 teams gather and begin to lay the groundwork for what could be in store during Hot Stove season and throughout the rest of the winter.
Let’s take a look at a few key areas for Cleveland’s offseason ahead. (Hat tip to MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian, who caught up with Antonetti in Las Vegas).
1. The bullpen is a focus
After their recent roster maneuverings, the Guardians are a bit short in the bullpen. As Antonetti succinctly said, “That’ll be a place where I think we will look at external options to add to the depth of that group.”
Cleveland’s bullpen ranked third in MLB this past season with a 3.44 ERA. It included Jakob Junis and Kolby Allard, both of whom are now free agents. It also featured Nic Enright, who underwent Tommy John surgery on Oct. 29. He will miss all of next season.
Beyond those relievers, MLB extended Emmanuel Clase’s non-disciplinary leave “until further notice” in August amid an ongoing league investigation. Clase was indicted on Sunday on charges related to an alleged betting scheme.
Last offseason, the Guardians signed free agents Junis and Paul Sewald to one-year deals, and they added Allard on a Minor League contract. As those moves show, there are multiple avenues a team can take when constructing a bullpen. One way or another, look for it to be a focus for Cleveland this winter.
2. Potential for outfield additions
The Guardians have a lot of outfielders, including up-and-coming players whom they want to give some runway next spring. But that group is also an area Cleveland could look to bolster this winter, after it struggled to get production in center (.574 OPS collectively) and right (.605) in 2025.
“We have a number of options, young players, that we’d like to give opportunities to,” Antonetti said. “But if there is that right external acquisition that we think makes sense for us, we’ll pursue it.”
Cleveland’s outfield is anchored by Steven Kwan, whose name appeared on the rumor mill ahead of the Trade Deadline this summer before he ultimately helped Cleveland win the AL Central. The two-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove Award winner has two seasons of arbitration eligibility remaining.
If we consider external additions, perhaps there is a balance that the Guardians can strike, between giving young players such as Chase DeLauter (ranked as Cleveland’s No. 2 prospect and No. 58 overall by MLB Pipeline), George Valera and C.J. Kayfus in center and right and also reinforcing the group.
Overall, the Guardians will explore both the trade and free-agent markets to address their needs this winter. And adding a right-handed-hitting outfielder would make sense because Kwan, DeLauter, Valera and Kayfus hit left-handed.
Looking at the free-agent market, those who fall under that umbrella include Harrison Bader, Austin Hays and Rob Refsnyder. There also is Miguel Andujar, who has experience moving between the infield and outfield. However, the majority of his time on the grass has come in left (1,375 1/3 career innings) compared to right (142).
Other outfielders in Cleveland’s mix include switch-hitter Angel Martínez, lefties Will Brennan, Petey Halpin, Nolan Jones and Daniel Schneemann, and right-handers Jhonkensy Noel and Jonathan Rodríguez. David Fry could be another option. He is set to return to playing the field after he was limited to DH duties this past season coming off Tommy John surgery last November.
The Guardians filled one of their two coaching staff vacancies on Wednesday by naming Andy McKay as their new field coordinator. They still must replace Craig Albernaz, the Orioles’ new manager who spent the past two seasons as Cleveland’s bench coach and associate manager.
The Guardians are actively working through that process, Antonetti said, looking at external candidates while also working through the possibility of internal candidates.
“It’s hard to put a specific timeframe on it,” Antonetti said. “But, in an ideal world, we’d like to have resolution as quickly as possible.”
